Two years ago, almost to the day, I packed my things and moved to New York City. This move was the ultimate leap of faith for me - quitting my stable job in Atlanta and enrolling in NYU’s graduate school. Crazy af. BUT possibly a life-changing move. (The jury’s still out on this)

Well, today’s the day I’ve been working towards for these past two years. I’m graduating from NYU with a Master’s in Public Relations & Corporate Communication. You’d probably imagine the first thoughts that crossed my mind this morning were something like “I did it!” or “I’m so excited to have accomplished this goal!” I’m here to tell you that those were the last things on my mind. Instead, I woke up and thought…

“How the hell am I going to get this cap on my head?” I’ve been growing my kinky, nappy, frustrating, beautiful, unpredictable natural hair out for about a year now, and the way this graduation cap is set up….

Let’s just say, I doubt the person who designed graduation caps ever imagined that someone like me would be wearing it. A woman…of color… with hair that defies gravity.

With that being said, I’ll stand with extra pride at my graduation. Knowing that Patriarchy is a Bitch, but in spite of that, I’ll be walking across that stage. And by the grace of God and bobby pins - I’ll be able to confidently accept this blessing and step into this next chapter of life.